Using the Girl Scout Cookie Model to Help Animal Shelters

What do Girl Scouts and Animal Rescues and Shelters have in common? We hope after you have read this post and helped us, we can say they both have in common very successful fund raisers.

WWA is an international grassroots organization whose single purpose is to help struggling rescues and shelters succeed. To do this we had to first learn what these animal welfare groups felt were their most pressing needs. An informal survey helped us identify the top three needs.

Focusing our attention on mainland USA, we learned that almost all struggle with the “need for money.” The reasons behind the need varied but the single most pressing need remained money.

With that in mind WWA set out to find a solution that would help. It would appear the most successful fund raiser in the states that helps individual groups is the Girl Scout cookie sales. Using their model, we set out to create a fundraiser that would be unique and work for all shelters, rescues, and sanctuaries across the country.

What we came up with is the “Take a bath – safe a life” fund raiser campaign. Bath salts were the perfect solution, giving animal lovers a chance to treat themselves or to buy as a gift a one of a kind luxury bath salt. The timing of the campaign couldn’t be more perfect. Take a bath – safe a life campaign will take place twice a year to coincide with March — spay and neuter your pet month — and October — adopt a shelter dog month. Not only will shelters and rescues be able to raise much needed money for themselves, they will also be able to promote within their communities the importance of altering your pet and the need for homes for all the lovely animals waiting at the shelters or with rescues.

The timing of this campaign for gift giving makes it even more perfect — both times coincide with Mothers day and Christmas. There isn’t a woman anywhere that wouldn’t love to be given some quality alone time where she can pamper herself.

Creating the campaign, coming up with the perfect fund raiser those things we easy. Now comes our biggest challenge — reaching out to shelters and rescues to let them know this program is available to them.

Because of the nature of the fund raiser we can only offer this to shelters, rescues, and sanctuaries in the lower 48 states and D.C. What we need at this time is animal lovers from each of these states to help WWA communicate with shelters.

We would like to start slowly and build the list of rescues and shelters participating over the next two years. Starting with the shelters that we consider to be on the front line (the SPCAs and the Humane Societies). We would like your help to communicate with them.

If you live in one of the 48 states or D.C. and would like to help us communicate with your local SPCA or Humane Society please consider joining us.

This is how you can help:

1. Join our Yahoo Group to get started. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WorldWise_Animals_USA/ 2. Locate and contact your local SPCA or Humane Society and provide us with the contact information requested. 3. Download and print a 3-6 page information/invitation packet and deliver in person or by mail to your local shelter (preferably in person). 4. Make one or two phone calls to your shelter.

To help in our communication efforts, we are going to ask that you provide the following information about yourself: your name, your state and your mobile number (to receive 5-10 text messages). Your information will only be available within the yahoo group and will not be shared elsewhere or stored by WorldWise Animals at any other location. We estimate the total time commitment to be 2.5 hours between now and the end of March 2011.

If you are affiliated with a rescue or sanctuary in this same area and would like to be our link with them please join the group and when the time comes we will ask you to share and extend an invitation to them.

Love This? Never Miss Another Story.

Thanks for subscribing!

GREAT STORY, RIGHT?

Share it with your friends

69 comments

LOG IN WITH FACEBOOK

OR SIGN IN WITH CARE2

It is a good idea but I would think the shelters would get more money if the people actually donated to them. They will only get a fraction of the selling price of the bath salts. Maybe this will get those who do not normally donate to the shelters to support them.

Being one who likes Girl Scout cookies, I am sad to say that the rising cost and shrinking box size has now limited to me to only three boxes a year.

On the other hand I donate both pet food and cash to my local shelter.

Thank You for your guest post, Dr. J. Beuadoin with the World Wise Animals. I am not sure of the bath salts either, unless they are organic (The Body Shop has). But I wish you a lot of luck as the shelters are in dire need of money!
I am so silly that I thought it would be dog or cat organic treats!!